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Non-invasive Spinal Cord Stimulation: Relevance of Modelling Studies in Clinical Protocol Design

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XV Mediterranean Conference on Medical and Biological Engineering and Computing – MEDICON 2019 (MEDICON 2019)

Part of the book series: IFMBE Proceedings ((IFMBE,volume 76))

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Abstract

Over the past two decades a growing interest has arisen in non-invasive neuromodulation of the spinal cord. The application of transcutaneous electric currents is a possible alternative therapy to many invasive procedures. This neuromodulatory technique may also be applied jointly with other therapies, such as pharmacologic substances, cognitive training and physiotherapy, to enhance the outcomes in the treatment of several neural dysfunctions.

Electric stimulation originates electric fields in neurons that can change the transmembrane potential, facilitating or inhibiting neural responses. Varying stimulation parameters, geometry and placement of the stimulation devices (e.g. electrodes, coils) will result in different electric field patterns and, consequently, in different spinal neuron responses. We will address how computational modelling methods using realistic human models can be useful to optimize stimulation parameters for specific clinical purposes.

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Acknowledgements

The research presented here was supported by UID/BIM/50005/2019, project funded by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)/Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Ensino Superior (MCTES) through Fundos do Orçamento de Estado, and also by the FCT in the scope of the FCT-IBEB Strategic Project UID/BIO/00645/2013. S. R. Fernandes was supported by a FCT grant, reference SFRH/BD/100254/2014.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Biofísica e Engenharia Biomédica, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016, Lisbon, Portugal

    Sofia Rita Fernandes & Pedro Cavaleiro Miranda

  2. Instituto de Fisiologia, Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Avenida Professor Egas Moniz, 1649-028, Lisbon, Portugal

    Sofia Rita Fernandes, Mariana Pereira & Mamede de Carvalho

Authors
  1. Sofia Rita Fernandes
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  2. Mariana Pereira
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  3. Mamede de Carvalho
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  4. Pedro Cavaleiro Miranda
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sofia Rita Fernandes .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Jorge Henriques

  2. Universidade do Minho, Braga, Portugal

    Nuno Neves

  3. University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Paulo de Carvalho

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Fernandes, S.R., Pereira, M., de Carvalho, M., Miranda, P.C. (2020). Non-invasive Spinal Cord Stimulation: Relevance of Modelling Studies in Clinical Protocol Design. In: Henriques, J., Neves, N., de Carvalho, P. (eds) XV Mediterranean Conference on Medical and Biological Engineering and Computing – MEDICON 2019. MEDICON 2019. IFMBE Proceedings, vol 76. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31635-8_214

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31635-8_214

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-31634-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-31635-8

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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